The existence of solutions to a class of quasilinear elliptic problems on noncompact Riemannian manifolds, with finite volume, is investigated. Boundary value problems, with homogeneous Neumann conditions, in possibly irregular Euclidean domains are included as a special instance. A nontrivial solution is shown to exist under an unconventional growth condition on the right-hand side, which depends on the geometry of the underlying manifold. The identification of the critical growth is a crucial step in our analysis, and entails the use of the isocapacitary function of the manifold. A condition involving its isoperimetric function is also provided. (C) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.